Menu Ideas for Dinner

The most difficult part in cooking and preparing a dinner is to decide the menu. If you are cooking for your family, you have to make sure that the dinner menu is such that everybody is happy with it. If there are certain food items that a particular family member will absolutely not eat, then you have to see to it that you cook something else for him/her.

Keeping aside personal likes and dislikes, you also have to make sure that the menu you are going to cook for dinner is healthy and nutritionally balanced. What to eat for dinner might seem confusing, but having a menu ready will make cooking much easier.

A good menu is one that is not only tasty and delicious, but which has all the relevant nutrition too. Always remember that for a good family dinner, you should use only the freshest possible produce as well as seasonal fruits and vegetables.

When you have to cook seven times a week, it might become stressful after a while to come up with good dinner ideas. You might even get tempted to purchase those ready to cook dinners which only needs to be placed inside a microwave before eating. However doing this is going to hurt the health of your family in the long run.

With some organization and clear thinking, you can make up meal plans for dinner that are easy to cook and also require less time. You should sit down with your family, so that they too can tell you their menu ideas for dinner.

Preparations that can be made beforehand, like chopping vegetables and making chicken stock will help in cutting down the time you spend in the kitchen for making dinner. If you have children, enlist their help in making dinner. This will not only save you valuable time but will also make the children more comfortable around the kitchen.

Choose quick and easy dinner recipes that are healthy too. If you are throwing a party in summer, then you should have a good summer dinner party menu ideas.

Here are some healthy dinner ideas for tonight.

• Herb Crusted Pork Chops, Mashed Potatoes, Steamed Green Beans
• Spicy Vegetable Soup, Grilled Halibut with Mint Chutney, Stir Fried Snow Peas
• Chicken Lasagna, Mixed Green Salad, Garlic Bread
• Tomato Soup, Pasta with Three Peppers, Chocolate Pastry

• Beef Stroganoff, Mushroom Pilaf, Lemon Cake
• Seared Sea Bass, Green Salad with Herb and Honey Vinaigrette
• Green Peas Soup, Lamb Tagine with Couscous
• Crab Cakes, Wild Mushroom Risotto, Butterscotch Brownies
• Peanut Noodles with Shredded Chicken, Roasted Baby Potatoes, Bread and Butter Pudding

These were some meal ideas for dinner. Try to rotate the main course by using different proteins and meats. Sea food should ideally be served two to three times a week and salads and soups that are made of fresh vegetables should also be incorporated for dinner. 

When you are home alone, it might seem tedious to cook for just person. But having a good dinner is very important. Preparing a one pot meal is much easier than trying to cook two to three items. One pot meals are good dinner ideas since it takes less effort to cook and the leftovers can be used the next day too.

• Chicken Pot Pie
• Summer Squash and Corn Chowder
• Vietnamese Beef-Noodle Soup
• Spicy Lamb Stew
• Chicken and Rice Casserole
• Spanish Paella
• Char Siu Pork Roast
• Turkey and Mushroom Ragout

These were some good dinner menu ideas. If you require dinner ideas for two, then a good main course with a salad and an elegant dessert should be sufficient. Hope that these dinner menu ideas provided you some inspiration in deciding the menu for family as well as solitary dinners.